Rep. Jay Inslee, Democratic candidate for governor, said in a statement that lawmakers should not make additonal cuts to education when they return for a special session in November. “Our parents can’t afford it. Our state’s future can’t afford it. We know education is the key to job growth in this state. I hope the […]
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The state’s economist, known as “Dr. Doom” for his increasingly dire revenue projections, will present his next estimate Nov. 17. On Thursday Gov. Chris Gregoire said she’ll convene a special legislative session shortly after that, on Nov. 28, so lawmakers can deal with a $1.3 billion operating budget deficit. That shortfall was revealed by Arun […]
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A special 30-day legislative session will be held, likely in late November, to address a $1.3 billion budget deficit, Mike Baker at The Associated Press reports. Gov. Chris Gregoire will call lawmakers back to Olympia, probably after the next revenue foreast comes out. It was the most recent revenue forecast, released a week ago, that has the […]
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A slim majority of Washington voters favors raising the state sales tax by 1 percent to create an education trust fund, according to a new poll. That same idea was shot down by voters in 2004, who rejected Initiative 884 by a 60 percent to 40 percent margin. The independent sampling, paid for by local […]
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Washington’s policymakers will have to answer difficult questions in the coming weeks and months: Can the state’s colleges and universities survive a 30 percent cut, after absorbing nearly a half-billion-dollar budget cut earlier this year? Will further reductions to public safety budgets make Washington unsafe by reducing or eliminating the supervision of dangerous parolees? Is […]
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Seattlepi.com asked longtime local political pollster Stuart Elway whether Seattle’s reputation as a tax-happy municipality is well deserved, and whether anything could jeopardize city officials’ hopes that the populace will vote for big-ticket items this fall for education and transportation. Elway said: The record certainly points to an electorate willing to tax themselves. I don’t […]
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Seattle has many nicknames – the Emerald City, Jet City, Queen City and Rain City, to name a few. Perhaps the sobriquet Tax City should be added to the list. Since 2000, city voters have approved $1.3 billion in non-school related tax increases, raising the levy lid for things like parks, low income housing, education […]
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The high-stakes, big-money battle over the liquor business in Washington continued in Olympia on Monday, as state lawmakers considered details about how to ask for bids to take over its liquor distribution system. Earlier this year, Gov. Chris Gregoire signed a bill allowing officials to consider such offers. Under S.B. 5942, the state would still […]
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Seattlepi.com has been delving further into a question vexing some Seattle bar and club owners – when would they be liable for charging the retail sales tax on cover charges? The issue was raised this week in a Stranger story. Club owners told the paper they were surprised when state tax auditors had told them […]
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The post detailing a Stranger story about complaints from some Seattle bar and club owners that the state is dinging them for an “opportunity to dance” tax they’ve never been subject to before has produced a lively online discussion. Several people have commented that the owners are out of line. They’re operating a business and […]
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